San Cristobal is the easternmost island of the Galapagos archipelago and it is not only rich in fauna but also in history.
It is the first island Darwin visited and the home of the first settlement in the Galapagos Islands. Currently, this island has the second largest human population in Galapagos with 6.672 residents. Puerto Baquerizo Moreno is the administrative capital and it has an airport, government offices, a national park interpretation center, and a Navy facility.
During our Galapagos tour we will have the opportunity to visit the highlands of San Cristobal, El Junco Lagoon and La Galapaguera.
The Highlands are quite a special place to visit, as it is home to a variety of bio zones that you can see during your hike. San Cristobal highlands reach a maximum elevation of 730 meters (2.400 feet) and have a cooler weather than Puerto Baquerizo Moreno.
Right in the heart of the highlands we will find El Junco, a fresh water lake formed by the collapsed caldera of an extinct volcano. It is the only sizable fresh water lake in the Galapagos, fed by rain water and its volume varies with the season. This is a great opportunity for bird watching as you can observe frigate birds that come to rinse their wings from the salt, Bahamas ducks and the endemic San Cristobal mockingbird also known as the Chatham mockingbird.
We will move on, to La Galapaguera a tortoise research and conservation center, also a sanctuary for giant tortoises where we will learn more about these unique creatures in a natural setting.
Lunch will be served at a natural farm and after a break in the hammocks we will continue on to the last visitor site of our Galapagos day tour and reach Puerto Chino Beach, an isolated bay located on the southeastern part of San Cristobal Island. On this beach we can swim and spot blue-footed boobies and sea lions.
Visit a giant tortoise reserve, the Junco Lagoon and after lunch, which will be served in a typical highland ranch, we will go to the beautiful Puerto Chino Beach.
